How hard is it to solo?

theJoshFrost

I'm tempted to solo through BG:EE, just to see if I can. Never tried it before... Exactly HOW difficult is it really? With a fighter.

Djimmy

I don't think it will be very hard. You will level up more quickly, so at a certain point it will become very easy I guess. I don't recommend you to solo, though. Why would you play the EE if you skip the new NPCs and thus the new areas.

Schneidend

With just a vanilla Fighter? Pretty tough. At low levels you'll be very vulnerable to Fear and Charm spells. And, as Djimmy points out, BG:EE provides a lot of incentive to party up.

BlackLinx

I've played in "solo" (BG classic + ToSC) with my Paladin, but I've imported a 7th level character instead that to start with a new one.

Moomintroll

Give it a go, levelling up speed is pretty cool. You will discover the usefulness of potions! at least I did.

Lemernis

I was actually surprised at how much easier than expected it was with an evil cleric-mage who has no scruples and takes every advantage presented. I think it would be rather tough for a NG warrior, i.e., no arcane or divine magic and always doing right.

theJoshFrost

Lemernis said:

I was actually surprised at how much easier than expected it was with an evil cleric-mage who has no scruples and takes every advantage presented. I think it would be rather tough for a NG warrior, i.e., no arcane or divine magic and always doing right.

Lucky for me, my fighter would probably be Chaotic Evil.

Bjjorick

hmmm, i would imagine the biggest thing would be keeping yourself healthy between fights, as you only heal a few hp per rest. But as one person said, you'll discover the use of potions.

Permidion_Stark

I've soloed a couple of times, once a paladin and once as a Fighter/Mage/Thief. It's actually much easier to do than you might think. If you know the game well it is easy to get the experience to level up at first and after that you'll soon find you are more powerful than most of the enemies you come up against. But you'll need an XP cap remover or you will hit the limit pretty early in the game.

Doom972

The game gives you enough potions to make soloing possible. You just need to try and fight your enemies in small groups (preferably one at a time) by advancing slowly in enemy-populated areas. Invisiblity/stealth can allow you to avoid some battles (you'll get enough experience anyway), and when you find yourself having to deal with an overwhelming group of enemies, there is no shame in running away, healing/resting and getting back to the fight.

Lemernis

Another thing I'm recalling now is that it's hard not to use meta-knowledge of traps when soloing other than a thief or a cleric.

I was able to sidestep them authentically with a cleric-mage using the priest spell Find Traps, which is one reason I chose that class build.

Cheesebelly

It's easy with the right classes. Easiest classes are fighter/mage and fighter/thief, followed by cleric/thief and cleric/ranger, followed by mage/thief and cleric/mage

Generally speaking, single classes are tougher, but it is highly doable with any class in the game.

hansolo

If you avoid potion cheesiness and wand abuse it can get pretty tough. Otherwise it is easy.
I soloed with a bard. Sarevok gave me a bit of a headache, but after abusing wand of summoning it was easy. But also unfullfilling ;P.

Alejandro

It´s pretty easy, really. I only played BG1 once and soloed it as a mage. I was younger and didn't really understand the point of the game at that time. Then, when BG2 came, I always took a party with me. Much more fun that way.

Anduin

Hard

Candramelekh

I finished BG1for the first time on last week and did it with solo mage-generalist. I think, with fighter it would be much easier

raywind

Bard solo was easiest for me and after tutu install Blade was the easiest one for me.

Silence

Soloing is possible with almost any class as long as you use potions.

1. Potions of invisibility are a must. Useful for escape, backstab and circumventing opponents. I think you can disarm traps without breaking invisibility.

2. Potions of clarity will permit imunity to pesky-mind affecting spells (like charm).Also, potions of Magic Blocking (50% immunity to magic), Invulnerability (+5 to saves) and Stone Form (+3 to saves) will boost your resistances. Scrolls of magic resistance are great as an emergency manouver, but they'll make magical buffing impossible.

3.Potions of free action will allow you to resist paralysis. These potions are uncommon but great!

3.Potions of Strength, Heroism and the like will make melee combat easy. Drink one before every battle.

4.Potions of Fire and Electric resistance are useful.

5.Oil of Speed. Oil of speed. Oil of speed. That is all.

With the right potions, even a Kensai can solo. I find soloing with a Barbarian, Inquisitor or Berserker easy due to their innate immunites to many magical effects. Thieves + part thieves are devastating as solo characters, due to the awesome traps and backstabs. At the start, Fighter-Mages, Fighter-Clerics and Fighter-Druids solo well, but later they become absolutely awesome due to the cool spells (and summoning spells) they receive.

ajwz

THe game is fairly easy to solo once you have the hang of it. The first time you do you will need to develop new tasctics for all the fights though so it almost functions as an entirely new game.
Also I recommend playing someone with thief skills for your first solo run through.

Smaug

I almost exclusively solo. I only play through with companions to explore dialog. It just takes a different playing style and isn't all that difficult.

Lock

I used to solo almost exclusively, usually with a mage class. Getting a wand of fireball or two early on (such as from the Ankheg den) was my standard strategy for flattening any opposition during the lower levels.

sandmanCCL

It wouldn't be possible with a fighter. I can see you doing a large chunk of it with enough patience, but you just won't be able to beat Sarevok. I cannot fathom doing that without an exceptional amount of luck.

A cleric/mage would be best at it, I think, followed closely by a mage/thief, fighter/mage and Bard.

If you're running solo, consumables are your friend. That's really all there is to it.

Metal_Hurlant

I've done it twice with a F/M/T and a Bard. A bard is quite easy.

raywind

bard,blade,skald,jester,assassin,bounty hunter,paladin,archer,sorcerer,mage,wild mage and thief were all pretty easy, those are the ones i soloed in bg1 and 2 few more in 2 only blade was the easiest and paladin second with full plate and dagger of venom to interrupt casting, hardest was wizard slayer that i didnt finish in bg1 but tried again in 2 with dualing to thief and after that was easy also.

HaHaCharade

I just don't get the point of soloing... I mean everyone knows the game is easy anyway, I just think building the party with the different NPCs is 99% of the fun... Maybe that's me :-)

theJoshFrost

HaHaCharade said:

I just don't get the point of soloing... I mean everyone knows the game is easy anyway, I just think building the party with the different NPCs is 99% of the fun... Maybe that's me :-)

Speak for yourself. I find all Infinity Engine games to be brutally difficult. Lol.

raywind

without mods infinity games are easy to me also and with mods i find soloing easier than full party play but thats just me. ascension,SCS 1 & 2.

xLegionx

I would highly suggest beating the game with a leveled character first and then solo it. You can't make it through the beginning as a low level I mean especially as a fighter. All those bad boy spells and those nasty archers...and add enchanted gear to your enemies and your really setting yourself up for a trip to the nine hells.

Smaug

xLegionx said:

You can't make it through the beginning as a low level I mean especially as a fighter.

"Can't" is a strong word, this is how I played BG for a long time, including my first ever play through.

Knettgummi

HaHaCharade said:

I just don't get the point of soloing... I mean everyone knows the game is easy anyway, I just think building the party with the different NPCs is 99% of the fun... Maybe that's me :-)

It's a nice change of pace when you've done a couple of play-throughs with a full party.

Soloing with a class that lacks certain "must have" abilities, like healing or trap detection/disarming is fun challenge. Sure, solo F/M/Ts, or whatever, hit crazy overpoweredness in higher levels, but try soloing something like a monk through the early levels of BG1 and I'm sure you'll find the game is not so easy anymore.

Lemernis

One of the things I enjoy most about the game is the teamwork strategies in using a party. Soloing is a diversion that I tried once, and it was interesting and fun in its own way. But at least for my taste I still prefer assembling a party.